


Every Little Thing

by Akali_Kin



Category: VALORANT (Video Game)
Genre: Comfort, Domestic, F/F, Fluff, Viper has depression
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-02
Updated: 2021-02-02
Packaged: 2021-03-13 10:27:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,072
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29151987
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Akali_Kin/pseuds/Akali_Kin
Summary: “Did you miss me?” Killjoy smiled through her words, keeping herself on task with cooking. It was a bit of a stretch to turn down the heat without pulling away from Viper’s arms, but she managed. “I wasn’t gone that long.”“No, I didn’t. You’re only good for your body heat.” Viper muttered, wrapping her arms tighter around Killjoy’s waist. Which did nothing but make Killjoy giggle at her words.
Relationships: Killjoy/Viper (VALORANT)
Comments: 3
Kudos: 127





	Every Little Thing

**Author's Note:**

> A short fluff fic as a gift for a friend!

Dreary was the kind of weather Viper liked. Not for aesthetically pleasing reasons, she didn’t quite care for that. It simply made her life easier. Life moved faster with dreary weather. No one wanted to prattle on about meaningless things or idle conversation, people walked fast and simply finished their goals for the day so they could go home and crawl into their blankets for warmth. The efficiency of it all was what Viper liked. 

That doesn’t mean she was omitted from doing the same thing as all the rest. 

The door was kicked shut behind her, the automatic lock sealing the outside world out from her apartment. Her coat barely made it onto the rack, one arm dragged down by gravity until it slumped on the floor, soon followed by a pair of flats that were pushed to the side of the front hallway with annoyance. 

Her feet practically dragged across the floor, rubbing at the bags under her eyes as she walked through her apartment by memory. No lights, not from the filaments above, or any natural sunlight from the windows. Her mind didn’t even humor the idea of food, having gotten so used to her empty stomach over the course of the day it just blended with the soreness of her body. 

With an inelegant final heave of her body, Viper fell against the loveseat and let out a guttural hiss as she struggled to let the stress leave her body. After a few minutes, utter silence filled the room like a thick miasma in the air. It made it hard to breathe, leaving Viper clutching at her chest as she lay there feeling like she could sink into the material of the sofa and never resurface. 

She barely found the energy inside of her to grasp at the blanket that was draped over the back of the couch, dragging it over her feeble body until it felt like it could properly suffocate her. Sleeping on the couch was second hand to her at this point, often finding herself too tired to crawl into bed, uncaring of the sore spine it gave her. 

The world was already dark before she closed her eyes, but the thick black of unconsciousness edged at the corners of her vision, feeling so much more welcoming than the waking world. She could avoid judgement and scorn under the safety of a blanket, she could avoid the people who disapproved of her, she could avoid the idiocy and noise.

Most of all she could avoid herself. At least for a little while. 

  
  


_____________________________________________________

Hearing was the first sense that returned to her. Something was moving inside of her house. It was subtle. The shuffle of socks against hardwood. Like someone was trying to not make noise, but still managed to fail at it. The next thing she felt was how painfully cold her feet were, pulling them up and under the blanket instinctually. Her movement caused the shuffling noise in her apartment to stop, like a scared animal that thought it was about to be caught. 

“If you want to rob me, you’re exceptionally bad at it.” Viper’s voice grumbled in her throat, the lingering traces of sleep still dripping from it. She wasn’t truly worried about the possibility of a thief or worse. Simply because the exact voice she expected to answer her, did.

“Oh!  _ Verzeihung _ …” 

She could hear Killjoy’s smile in her voice, awkward and apologetic. The heavy footfalls echoed closer to the bundle of blankets on the couch, stopping just over top of Viper, much to her annoyance. 

“I didn’t mean to wake you. I let myself in because I knocked, but you didn’t answer…” She could hear the softness in Killjoy’s voice, like she was feeling guilty. Viper furrowed her brow even if she couldn’t be seen.

“Hmm, I  _ wonder  _ why.” The biting sarcasm left her before she even realized she did it. From where she could hear Killjoy’s voice, she could tell that the girl was kneeling by the couch, or at least crouched to be closer to Viper’s face. There was a moment of silence after Viper’s words lingered in the air, leaving the bitterness in them slightly more obvious. 

“Umm… Well, I brought over some fresh vegetables, since I saw you leave before I could say hi. I actually grew them! They’re smaller than I expected actually, but I guess that’s what happens when you grow them indoors.” Killjoy’s voice spoke a little louder suddenly, like she had moved away and was busying her hands with something. “I thought we could make a meal out of them. I didn’t know what you would want so I maybe grabbed, like, one of each? That should be enough to make whatever we want I think. As long as we don’t need two onions. Which most meals do but, who really  _ needs  _ that much onion-”

“I’m not hungry.” 

Killjoy’s rambling stopped. The somber feeling of the weather outside seemed to invade Viper’s apartment, despite how hard she tried to keep it out. Her body under the blankets seemed to curl up tighter. Viper didn’t know it, but a hand hovered over the blanket, apprehension making it pause… 

Viper bristled when the blanket was pulled back. Her tired eyes blinked to see, most of her vision blocked by her own hands on the couch in front of her, but she could see her. Killjoy was kneeling beside her, her eyes so soft and brimming with concern. She looked pained, her face echoing what she could see inside Viper’s eyes. 

“ _ Geliebter _ …” Killjoy whispered under her breath, her fingers sliding gently under Viper’s palm and resting the woman’s hand in her own. “You could have called me.” 

“I didn’t need pity.” Viper averted her eyes with a grimace, hating how her stomach tied itself in sick knots with how Killjoy looked at her. 

“It’s not pity...” Killjoy sounded a little hurt, looking down at Viper’s hand that she held. Her thumb stroked over the back of her hand, mimicking an action she had felt Viper do to her so many times before. She bent down, pressing her lips to the knuckles of Viper’s hand. Her hands were worn. Not callused, but not soft. Nothing told her to do that, but as she pulled back, it had felt right. “I don’t believe you’re really cold blooded like they say, Sabine. You’re allowed to want warmth.”

Viper struggled to fill her lungs with the tightness that wrapped around her chest, finding the only way to express herself was to close her eyes and sigh, frustration etched onto the lines of her face. Even when she gripped Killjoy’s fingers in her hand tighter. 

Killjoy smiled, wiggling her fingers in Viper’s hand, chuckling under her breath when Viper grumbled in annoyance at it. “Are you hungry,  _ Liebling _ ?” She asked again.

  
“No.” 

  
“Have you eaten today?”

  
“... No.” 

Killjoy felt the resistance as she pulled away, Viper’s grasp tightening around her hand to keep her where she could reach her.. Killjoy smiled again, pressing her cheek into the couch cushion while she waited. Admiring every sharp line of Viper’s feature, the natural red of her lips, she could even find beauty in the tiredness of the scientist's eyes. 

In spirit, Killjoy could watch Viper’s face forever, whether she was sleeping or awake. In practice… “My knees are starting to hurt.” Killjoy laughed softly, her breath tickling Viper’s nose, gently trying to pull her hand out of the woman’s grip. 

  
“Too bad.” Viper growled low in her throat, not even opening her eyes but knowing full well the almost insufferable bright smile was inches from her face. 

“I’ll be back before you know it.” Killjoy murmured as gently as she could, her fingers slipping from Viper’s hand. “And I’ll be back with fooood. And a blanket. And tea?” 

“Whatever. Fine.” Viper scoffed under her breath, curling her arms around herself as she settled back into the couch. Killjoy was a little clumsy as she stood, brushing the dust from her knees and pausing to stretch the cramps in her thighs. She gave a lingering look at Viper and felt a strong little fire well inside her chest, clenching her fist around the handle of the bag of vegetables. With her sleeves rolled up, Killjoy dropped the bag on the counter and set to work. 

From the living room, the noises of chopping vegetables and rice being poured could be heard. Viper was surprised to hear them. She had expected to be… abandoned. Her words had left her as if she had even wanted that. The longer she lay on the couch, hearing the sounds of simmering food and boiling water, the more it set in that Killjoy had stayed. 

Viper’s eyes raised to look across the room, seeing subtle signs of the other woman’s residence in her apartment. Her sneakers in the hallway, one on its side. A beanie on the living room table that she had forgotten. A pile of unfinished movies left beside her tv. A brightly coloured mug that stood out against the rest of her dishes as the only one. Inch by inch, step by step, Killjoy was leaving marks in her home, letting the scientist know she was there, despite the resistance Viper had at times.

The blanket slumped halfway off the couch, slipping off of Viper’s form as she stood. Her silent footsteps carried her to the doorway of the kitchen, leaning her tired body against the doorframe. Killjoy’s back was turned to her, dedicated focus on the pan in front of her, and her phone in her hand. Her free hand cautiously reached for the spices, taking a second look at the screen, scrunching her nose up when she squints. Viper noticed it. She also noticed sometimes when Killjoy would focus, her tongue would peek from between her teeth. Something she made fun of her for often.

“ _ Mein gott… _ what is a ‘dash’? Who cooks with dashes?” Killjoy shook her head and sighed, placing her phone face down on the counter. Viper watched as Killjoy fumbled to open the container of spices, hesitant still with how much to add. The poor girl was trying so hard to make a simple meal as perfect as it could be. 

The kitchen floor was cold on Viper’s bare feet, her steps concealed by the noise of the sizzling food. She was standing right behind Killjoy, seeing how her hair unfurl down her neck and off her shoulders. Viper wrapped her arms around herself, shivering at how cold she was, the bitterness of the weather outside having seeped inside of her bones. 

She felt selfish, to wrap her arms around Killjoy’s waist, stealing the startling warmth she had. The warm hand that pressed over hers made Viper bury her face into the mass of brown hair that Killjoy always kept hidden under a hat. She smelled a bit like outside still, or like her workshop. Like oil without the sting of copper. Like wind, but without the biting cold at your nose.

“Did you miss me?” Killjoy smiled through her words, keeping herself on task with cooking. It was a bit of a stretch to turn down the heat without pulling away from Viper’s arms, but she managed. “I wasn’t gone that long.” 

“No, I didn’t. You’re only good for your body heat.” Viper muttered, wrapping her arms tighter around Killjoy’s waist. Which did nothing but make Killjoy giggle at her words. Her huff made the engineer’s hair flutter, catching Viper’s eye as it settled back on her shoulders. Her view wandered to the counter, the open bag, and the unfortunate mess of leftover vegetables that had been chopped but had not made it into the pan. 

“What is that?” Viper scoffed at the remnants of something green and curved, looking like it had been cored. 

“Hm? Oh, that’s a bell pepper. I’m quite proud of that one actually, it was the largest of the batch.” Killjoy tilted her chin up in a triumphant grin. The oven beeped, making the girl let out an excited ‘oh!’, turning her attention to the pot on her right. Steam slipped around the handles and wafted into the air as she lifted the lid, the clean and simple smell of cooked rice wafting out of the pot. 

“I think you grew it wrong.” Viper managed to wear an apathetic smile, taunting Killjoy about the vegetable was something so mundane, so pointless, she couldn’t believe that Killjoy actually huffed in response. 

“You can’t grow things wrong! It grows on it’s own.” Killjoy pouted, still trying to attend to the pot on the stove as best as she could, finding the limitation of having Viper’s arms around her a bit restrictive. Her upset response earned a dry laugh from the woman at her back.

“Well you picked to grow ugly peppers.” Viper’s lips softened, relaxing from her fake sneer into something else. Her forehead was pressed against Killjoy’s neck, finding the cold that had been crawling up her neck all day seem to just fade away. 

“Don’t be mean. Maybe it doesn’t look nice but it tastes good.” A loud click from the stove and all heat cut out. The room was a bit warmer from the cooking, or maybe it was because the two women had warmed it themselves. But it felt comforting, safe from the fog and cold that clung to the windows outside. “You know, you need to let go of me so I can serve us.” 

Killjoy tried to turn where she stood, not surprised to find herself stuck in place by the arms around her hips. Killjoy laughed softly, letting her hand rest over Viper’s. Viper’s hands were a reflection of their owner. Sometimes cold, worn, meticulous, some would even call them creepy with how she moved. Killjoy found them different than most though. Skilled, soft when they touched, comforting. 

“ _ Liebling. _ ” Killjoy spoke softly, covering Viper’s hands completely with her own. “If you’re going to keep me here, at least let me turn around.” 

The grip around her loosened, and as much as Killjoy was glad to move, she did miss it. She thanked her height as she turned, finding Viper easily slipping under her arms so they could keep themselves pressed tightly together in a hug. Viper was leaning against her chest, just beneath her neck, hiding her face. Killjoy smiled at the sight, wrapping her arms around Viper’s shoulders and bending down to kiss at the top of her head. Something that usually annoyed the irascible woman. Which was why Killjoy kept doing it. 

“You’re too tall.” Viper’s voice was muffled from where she hid away in Killjoy’s sweater. Her hands came up to rest on Killjoy’s back, clutching at her sweater tighter. 

“I thought you liked that about me.” Killjoy laughed under her breath. Viper felt it in her chest, how it vibrated when she talked and laughed, hearing her breathe softly. She didn’t want to pull away from it. She could stay here, where the outside world couldn’t touch her. 

“No. It’s irritating.” Viper mumbled the words, raising her head to glare up at Killjoy’s annoying goofy smile. Maybe it was the dim light of the room that played tricks on Killjoy’s eyes, but the soft pink tint of blush had dusted Viper’s cheeks. 

Killjoy initiated the kiss. She wasn’t used to it, her lips just slightly off center of Viper’s, giggling nervously at her mistake before she fixed it. Viper didn’t notice, lost in thought of how soft and warm Killjoy’s lips were. She smiled at the approval of how Viper kissed her back. But she had just meant for it to be a quick peck. As soon as their lips parted, Viper’s hands grabbed hold of Killjoy’s sweater and pulled her back down, cutting off Killjoy’s surprised yelp and deepening the kiss. Viper had to stand on her toes to reach Killjoy’s lips. Because she wanted this kiss more than she wanted air. 

Viper’s breath was hot against her lips when she finally let go, settling back onto the heels of her feet. Killjoy blinked in surprise. The ambient hum of the refrigerator filling the air as the thumping of her heart left Killjoy’s ears. Now her own face was red. Viper was still in her arms, her forehead leaning against Killjoy’s chest. Her breathing was deep and slow, matching Killjoy’s, wanting to settle her racing heart. 

Even as she blushed, Killjoy couldn’t help but smile, staring into the empty space of the room with goofy content. It took her a good couple of seconds to shake her head and focus again, remembering the reason they were even standing in the kitchen in the first place. 

“Ah ha… Well. I have quite an appetite now I think.” Killjoy’s voice had a touch of faux bolster in it, still smiling like a cat that had caught it’s favorite toy. Viper didn’t have to see her to know the smile was there, groaning at just the thought of it. That ended up only fueling Killjoy’s confidence. “Aw. Do I have to carry you to the couch?”

“Ugh. No. For gods sake no.” After so long, Viper finally let go. She took a step back, an arm crossed in front of her waist as she hugged herself, a glower on her face. Even if she was blushing now too. She turned on her heel, marching out of the kitchen. “Just… hurry up and bring the food.”

“Aye aye,  _ Kapitänin _ .” Killjoy gave a playful little salute, busying herself with the task and even humming a mindless tune under her breath as she did. Viper could hear it still as she walked into the living room, dropping herself onto the couch and holding her cheeks in her palms.

Her face was warm against her cold fingers. She let out a groan, covering her eyes with her hands. She didn’t hate the feeling in her chest or the beating of her heart as it raced. All she could do was sigh at herself. The weight on her shoulders felt lighter than when she had come home, and the stinging of her tired eyes had faded. Her nose felt warm, not used to the smell of fresh food in her apartment. In so many ways, Viper hated that she loved when Killjoy called her name from the kitchen. 

Sabine smiled. 


End file.
